Hyla Audio Sarda Impressions / Discussion Thread
May 4, 2020 at 2:44 PM Post #32 of 46
Ah yes, I was referring to that one, the white one.

How does the white one sound?

Sounds great, not much different than the stock one. I'm not a huge believer in cables making large differences in sound though so take my opinion with a grain of salt. But the stock PW Audio cable is a bit stiff and it wasn't 2.5mm so I switched the the more flexible ISN cable.
 
Apr 8, 2021 at 8:27 AM Post #34 of 46
Hi everyone.

I just got my Sarda’s in. I love them. This is the sound I’m after. Clarity on point, bass, sub Bass. Really playing lots of genres fantastic. I’m sure these will keep me satisfied for a good while.
I’m running them off of my Fiio Q5s for portability. I’ll be a year abroad soon and I needed a great portable set.

Now I have a question. I use a IEMatch and it’s great on Single Ended, setting on high with stock cable. Sounds fantastic.

I tried putting it in Balanced just to see with an adapter I have. Sounds like they can’t handle it, just sounds bad. Even when playing silent with IEMatch on ultra. Also I heard a little pop in the right plug when putting it in balanced.

I’m just going to listen on single ended.

Now is it dangerous to put it in balanced? Too much power? Could I have done something bad by that?

I’m not in the know about specifics of audio, I just enjoy bloody good music and gear.

Thanks
 
Apr 8, 2021 at 9:07 AM Post #35 of 46
Awesome! Glad you like them. What amp are you using with the ie match? Also, if you are trying to go balance input, which is perfectly fine, the ie match uses a dual 3.5 mm bal and single ended input, so you would need a specific 3.5 trrs cable to go balanced. If you had problems im guessing a wrong cable on the sarda or your amp may be an issue. Also, the sarda loves good quality source gear, not necessarily more power, but quality power. That being said, generally balanced inputs will have the better quality and quanity power in an amp or dac over single ended.Not always the case, just depends on how the designer implemented each output. But a rule of thumb, if it has balance, use that. But that doesnt mean it will outperform every singled ended source in that price tier. Hope this helps, id be glad to clarify more too!
 
Apr 8, 2021 at 9:23 AM Post #36 of 46
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Apr 8, 2021 at 9:26 AM Post #37 of 46
Added a picture above of what I use.
the fiio q5s is a dac/amp combo that has se and bal outputs. I used the stock cable into an IEMatch , into 3.5 female to 4,4 male adapter because the balanced input of the fiio is 4,4mm.

would there be anything wrong with that setup?
 
Apr 8, 2021 at 9:31 AM Post #38 of 46
The 3.5 female to 4,4 could be the issue, but I'm not certain. Unless that specific adapter is for a balanced 3.5 trrs to 4.4. If its single ended 3.5trs to 4.4, then ive been told to avoid converting single ended to balanced, as this can cause issues and ruin equipment. Idk if u need the ie match though, but you may want to get a 4.4mm cable for your sarda with your fiio.
 
Apr 8, 2021 at 9:50 AM Post #40 of 46
Thanks for the replies!

Any advice on where to buy good cables for the Sarda? So I‘d need something TRRS to 4,4? I live in europe btw.
Dont know much about Europe cable market, but I think Forza Audio is there? But id skip the ie match i think. I believe the ie match is if you where to use an iem with large desktop amps. Just get a 2pin to 4.4mm cable.
 
Apr 8, 2021 at 7:05 PM Post #41 of 46
So the thing about the iematch with the sarda is that it depends on the source. The sarda is a pretty sensitive set and will pick up noise if the source (in this case the Q5s) is also noisey. For instance I have to use a iematch on my questyle qpm with the sarda or else I get a pretty bad noise floor.
 
Apr 10, 2021 at 9:53 AM Post #42 of 46
So My Sarda’s gave out on me.
Left bud is playing no bass anymore , only some mids and highs. really upsetting.

When I received them, I played single ended with IEMatch for a good while that day, and all was fine.
Only thing I did at the start was test them in the balanced input for like half a minute. Which I now know was not a great idea as indeed, the stock cable is a TRS cable. So that sounded quite distorted via the IEMatch into the balanced input of the Q5s.

But would plugging in unbalanced to balanced for that one time be enough to bust a driver or something like that? I read doing so will just distort the quality of sound, but I don’t read it killing your gear immediately. And after I tested that, I just went to listening single ended and all was fine. I put them to rest at night, woke up the next day and my left bud was dead.

Anybody has a clue? Hope it can be fixed with warranty or something.

I was so happy I got these :frowning2:
 
Mar 16, 2024 at 12:36 PM Post #43 of 46
I recently picked up these iems and wanted to add some impressions as there are not many and I think this iem really deserves more of a spotlight!

The sarda really excels with bass texture and the leading edge/decay of those lower level impacts are well defined. The first few hours were really night and day to other cheaper iems I used during travel. Mids are not hallowed out but are not as present as low or top end sound. Instrument separation is detailed and I can pick apart each one. I think having that crispy defined low end helps me here since in some cases it would bleed into mid bass with those cheaper options too. I understand why these have a V-shaped signature but its not as distinct as I would have thought, maybe its because I am non-stock tips (epro ep01). I did notice that softer jazz/acoustic tracks provided more of that V-shape that these are known for. Something surprising during my listening is that I really liked trumpet on the sarda for whatever reason, most brass/horns sounded great

Overall, I really keep coming back to these for their amazing bass texture. Just can’t get this from other options I have and whenever I’m feeling the any bass centric genre this is going to be my first pick hands down.

These also really just fit exceptionally well for me. I can wear these for hours without having to adjust them which is something I’ve not found in other iems thus far. Another side note, I liked the ep01 tips so much I’m using them on my other pair of iems now. Love the softer material that gels to the shape of my ear canals, super comfortable.
 
Mar 16, 2024 at 12:40 PM Post #44 of 46
Thanks for the replies!

Any advice on where to buy good cables for the Sarda? So I‘d need something TRRS to 4,4? I live in europe btw.
I know this is a few years out, but for anyone who visits this thread in the future I've found the PW Audio Blackicon Silver Gold series cable to be an excellent pairing with the Hyla Sarda
 
Mar 16, 2024 at 5:01 PM Post #45 of 46
I recently picked up these iems and wanted to add some impressions as there are not many and I think this iem really deserves more of a spotlight!

The sarda really excels with bass texture and the leading edge/decay of those lower level impacts are well defined. The first few hours were really night and day to other cheaper iems I used during travel. Mids are not hallowed out but are not as present as low or top end sound. Instrument separation is detailed and I can pick apart each one. I think having that crispy defined low end helps me here since in some cases it would bleed into mid bass with those cheaper options too. I understand why these have a V-shaped signature but its not as distinct as I would have thought, maybe its because I am non-stock tips (epro ep01). I did notice that softer jazz/acoustic tracks provided more of that V-shape that these are known for. Something surprising during my listening is that I really liked trumpet on the sarda for whatever reason, most brass/horns sounded great

Overall, I really keep coming back to these for their amazing bass texture. Just can’t get this from other options I have and whenever I’m feeling the any bass centric genre this is going to be my first pick hands down.

These also really just fit exceptionally well for me. I can wear these for hours without having to adjust them which is something I’ve not found in other iems thus far. Another side note, I liked the ep01 tips so much I’m using them on my other pair of iems now. Love the softer material that gels to the shape of my ear canals, super comfortable.
The Sarda is my favorite for travel and always in my backpack. As you said, super comfortable to wear for hours and great noise insulation on flights. It's a lot of fun with movies or music.
 

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